20221221 JOY IS BORN OF THE PROMISE
21 December, 2022, Wednesday, 4th Week of Advent
First reading |
Song of Songs 2:8-14 © |
See how my Beloved comes, leaping on the mountains
I hear my Beloved.
See how he comes
leaping on the mountains,
bounding over the hills.
My Beloved is like a gazelle,
like a young stag.
See where he stands
behind our wall.
He looks in at the window,
he peers through the lattice.
My Beloved lifts up his voice,
he says to me,
‘Come then, my love,
my lovely one, come.
For see, winter is past,
the rains are over and gone.
The flowers appear on the earth.
The season of glad songs has come,
the cooing of the turtledove
is heard in our land.
The fig tree is forming its first figs
and the blossoming vines give out their fragrance.
Come then, my love,
my lovely one, come.
My dove, hiding in the clefts of the rock,
in the coverts of the cliff,
show me your face,
let me hear your voice;
for your voice is sweet
and your face is beautiful.’
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 32(33):2-3,11-12,20-21 © |
Ring out your joy to the Lord, O you just; O sing him a song that is new.
Give thanks to the Lord upon the harp,
with a ten-stringed lute sing him songs.
O sing him a song that is new,
play loudly, with all your skill.
Ring out your joy to the Lord, O you just; O sing him a song that is new.
His own designs shall stand for ever,
the plans of his heart from age to age.
They are happy, whose God is the Lord,
the people he has chosen as his own.
Ring out your joy to the Lord, O you just; O sing him a song that is new.
Our soul is waiting for the Lord.
The Lord is our help and our shield.
In him do our hearts find joy.
We trust in his holy name.
Ring out your joy to the Lord, O you just; O sing him a song that is new.
Gospel Acclamation |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Key of David, who open the gates of the eternal kingdom,
come to liberate from prison
the captive who lives in darkness.
Alleluia!
Or: |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Emmanuel,
our king and lawgiver,
come and save us,
Lord our God.
Alleluia!
Gospel | Luke 1:39-45 © |
Why should I be honoured with a visit from the mother of my Lord?
Mary set out and went as quickly as she could to a town in the hill country of Judah. She went into Zechariah’s house and greeted Elizabeth. Now as soon as Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leapt in her womb and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. She gave a loud cry and said, ‘Of all women you are the most blessed, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. Why should I be honoured with a visit from the mother of my Lord? For the moment your greeting reached my ears, the child in my womb leapt for joy. Yes, blessed is she who believed that the promise made her by the Lord would be fulfilled.’
JOY IS BORN OF THE PROMISE
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [Song of Songs 2:8-14 or Zep 3:14-18a; Ps 33:2-3,11-12,20-21; Luke 1:39-45]
Christmas is often associated with joy. One of the carols that we like to sing is “Joy to the world!” What is the basis of this joy? Namely, that the Saviour has come and that Christ has come to reign with His love and truth. With Christ’s coming, there will be peace in our land and there will be love among men. The thought of Christ’s coming therefore fills those without love and without peace with expectant joy. This joy is born out of this promise. This is the message of today’s scripture readings as we enter the 5th day of the “O” Antiphons that prepare us for the coming of Christ.
In the first reading from the Book of Songs, the mystical love and union between God and His bride, the Church, is portrayed in terms of human love between two lovers. The Book of the Song of Songs is really a compendium of love songs for a wedding. Love is full of joy and admiration at the beauty of our loved ones. “I hear my Beloved. See how he comes leaping on the mountains, bounding over the hills. My Beloved is like a gazelle, like a young stag.” She says, “My dove, hiding in the clefts of the rock, in the coverts of the cliff, show me your face, let me hear your voice; for your voice is sweet and your face is beautiful.” Love is attentive, always paying attention and observing the details of our beloved. “See where he stands behind our wall. He looks in at the window, he peers through the lattice.” Where there is love, there is newness of life and we see things in a new perspective. “For see, winter is past, the rains are over and gone. The flowers appear on the earth. The season of glad songs has come, the cooing of the turtledove is heard in our land. The fig tree is forming its first figs and the blossoming vines give out their fragrance.”
Indeed, anyone who is in love with God is filled with joy. When the love of God fills the person’s heart, the things of this world pale in comparison with His love. “If one offered for love all the wealth of one’s house, it would be utterly scorned.” (Songs 8:7b) Love gives us meaning and purpose in life. To fall in love with God is the greatest thing on this earth. When God’s love is in our hearts, we find deeper inner peace, joy and security. St Paul says, “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” (Gal 2:20)
Secondly, the joy of Christmas comes from liberation. In the optional reading from Zephaniah, the prophet said, “Shout for joy, daughter of Zion, Israel, shout aloud! Rejoice, exult with all your heart, daughter of Jerusalem! The Lord has repealed your sentence; he has driven your enemies away.” Indeed, the Lord has come to take away our shame. He has come to take away all that harm and destroy us. He will help us to overcome our inner enemies, that is our sins and selfishness; and He will liberate us from our external enemies, pain, suffering and injustices. The prophet assures us that God is our warrior. He will fight the battle for us. We only need to rely on His strength and might. “The Lord, the king of Israel, is in your midst; you have no more evil to fear. When that day comes, word will come to Jerusalem: Zion, have no fear, do not let your hands fall limp. The Lord your God is in your midst, a victorious warrior.” Both in today’s acclamation before the gospel and at the Magnificat at vespers, we pray, “O Key of David, who open the gates of the eternal kingdom, come to liberate from prison the captive who lives in darkness.”
Truly, when the Lord is in us, we feel liberated from all fears, worries and anxieties. All our sins come from fear and the desire to protect our self-interests. We fear death, hunger and pain. But the Lord shows us that love is stronger than death and selfishness. So like the lover, we say to the Lord, “Set me as a seal upon your heart, as a seal upon your arm; for love is strong as death, passion fierce as the grave. Its flashes are flashes of fire, a raging flame. Many waters cannot quench love, neither can floods drown it.” (Songs 8:6-7a)
The Good News is that the Lord is coming and He has come. “My Beloved lifts up his voice, he says to me, ‘Come then, my love, my lovely one, come.” The Lord is saying to us, “Come then, my love, my lovely one, come.” In a real way, the Lord comes to us in the Incarnation. In the gospel reading, we read of how the Lord came to visit Elizabeth in the womb of Mary. “Now as soon as Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leapt in her womb and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.” The coming of the Lord filled Elizabeth with joy and John the Baptist also leapt for joy.
The Lord comes to us again and again. He comes to us when we receive Him in the Eucharist, just as our Blessed Mother carried the Lord in the tabernacle of her womb. Whenever we receive the Eucharist with a pure heart, a clear conscience and a devout spirit, the Lord enters into our lives and renews the Holy Spirit given to us at our baptism. If our disposition is right, the Lord comes, but most of the time we do not recognize His real presence in the Eucharist. This explains why although many Catholics receive communion every Sunday, nothing is happening in their lives. They receive without reverence, without a conscious recognition of Christ’s presence in the bread and most of all, in the seriousness of their sins.
Still, the Lord can come to us anew if we receive Him in the sacrament of reconciliation. The Lord wants to set us free from our prison of sin and misery. Our pride, self-righteousness, egotism and anger often blind us to the reality of the truth. If we want to be set free to find love and peace, then we need to seek His forgiveness; and then extend this forgiveness to our fellowmen and all those who have hurt us. So if we have not yet frequented the Sacrament of Reconciliation, we will be losing a great opportunity of grace. How can there be peace and joy at Christmas when one is not reconciled with God and with our loved ones and our fellowmen? If we want peace, let us make peace with ourselves, with God and others.
The Lord comes especially also in the compassion and mercy that others show to us, or vice versa. Mary, upon hearing that Elizabeth was pregnant in her old age immediately responded to her help. She travelled a great distance to help her cousin. We, too, like Mary are called to be channels of grace and love. She not only literally brought Jesus to Elizabeth and John the Baptist but she herself became the presence of Jesus to them. Through her kindness and graciousness, Elizabeth immediately sensed the divine presence in her heart and womb. We too must do the same. As we reach out to the lonely, the sick, the wounded, the hungry and the poor, we come to encounter Christ in them and they encounter Christ in us.
If the Lord were to dwell in our hearts, we must make time for silence and prayer. “Give thanks to the Lord upon the harp, with a ten-stringed lute sing him songs. O sing him a song that is new, play loudly, with all your skill.” This last week of Advent is an intense period of expectancy which is aroused and strengthened by prayer, meditation and contemplation. We must seek and desire that our Lord comes into our lives. Like the love who said, “Upon my bed at night I sought him whom my soul loves; I sought him, but found him not; I called him, but he gave no answer. I will rise now and go about the city, in the streets and in the squares; I will seek him whom my soul loves.” (Songs 3:1-2) Let us wait for the Lord in prayer and good works. “Our soul is waiting for the Lord. The Lord is our help and our shield. In him do our hearts find joy. We trust in his holy name.” Let us not delay any longer but have faith. “Yes, blessed is she who believed that the promise made her by the Lord would be fulfilled.”
Written by His Eminence, Cardinal William SC Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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